I haven't done a Manga Mondays in a while. Manga Mondays is a meme hosted by Alison at Alison Can Read where bloggers can share their passion for reading mangas. It's a great place to get new manga titles to try and to meet new bloggers. I actually haven't been in the manga reading mood lately, but I hope to change that soon.

Description:Cross Academy is attended by two groups of students: the Day Class and the Night Class. At twilight, when the students of the Day Class return to their dorm, they cross paths with the Night Class on their way to school. Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu are the Guardians of the school, protecting the Day Class from the Academy's dark secret: the Night Class is full of vampires! Kaname vows to sacrifice himself. Yuki vows to sacrifice herself to stop him. Zero takes a weapon in hand to protect what is dear to him. Whether parted for eternity or close enough to touch, they each will always desire their beloved.Review: Volume 19 is the last book in the Vampire Knight manga series. There is a lot happening in this volume that I had to reread it twice in order to wrap my head around the shocking revelations. In the end I had mixed feelings about the book and the series as a whole, mainly because it went in a direction that I didn't agree with.
Volume 18 has left our three main players going their separate ways. Kaname is done with being a pureblood vampire. Sick of what has become of his race, he has made a decision and is hell bent on sacrificing himself and allowing the vampires to be exterminated for good. He reveals his master plan and acknowledges that he was the one that set Zero's tragedy in motion leading up to this end, which shocks not only Yuki but also me as a reader. I've never liked Kaname though he had some few moments, but I never trusted his motivations and disliked him because of his cruelty.
When Yuki hears of Kaname's suicide plan, she vows that she will stop at nothing to save him even if it will cost her own life. Yuki and Kaname have had a very weird relationship, hovering between sibling fealty and love and romantic love. I was never shipping for them, but I do understand why she feels responsible towards Kaname. Of course where there is Yuki, there is Zero who keeps getting flashes of his memory that Yuki tried to erase in the previous volumes and goes after her to save her life.
The pacing of Volume 19 was off balance. The first half moved at a leisurely pace, allowing Kaname to unburden himself and come clean. The second half of the book, particularly the ending, is put on fast forward as we get one large revelations after the other without getting any time to process them. The solution to the love triangle is a cop-out in my opinion and doesn't really work. The alleged character growth of Kaname feels a bit forced and I honestly can't buy Zero's reactions after learning what Kaname did to his family. There is a epilogue that is a bit jumbled and it needs a few rereads to figure what happened in the future.
Overall I enjoyed Vampire Knight as a manga series. Like any other series there are volumes that were really good and others that were a bit meh. I just wished that it ended on a strong note and not a weak one. I would recommend this series to readers who enjoy paranormal romances.

Rating: 3 stars

Words of Caution: There is a small sex scene, but not graphic. There is also strong violence. Recommended for teens and up.

If you like this book try: Millennium Snow series by Bisco Hatori, Black Bird series by Kanoko Sakurakouji

I'm really kicking myself for not getting caught up with this series. I think I have 3 more volumes to read. I saw that the series had ended and kept thinking of finishing it but havne't gotten around to it. I need to post Manga Mondays reviews again soon.

19 volumes?! Is that typical for a manga series? Sorry, I'm such a noob - that just sounds like a lot to me. Although I see your issue with the series isn't necessarily that it was too drawn out, just that it went in a direction that you disliked. Still, I may end up giving this one a try sometime - might make a good first-time manga for a newbie?

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